NBA 2K21 dropped a hotfix yesterday meant to improve shooting and shot timing in some game difficulties. The hotfix comes in response to players struggling with NBA 2K21’s new shot timing, which has changed significantly from NBA 2K20.
Let me know what you guys think, especially play now, mycareer and myteam people. With this year’s shooting changes everything was revamped and it was tough to get perfect out of the box, but we’ll get there. https://t.co/jFg32yErX0
— Mike Wang (@Beluba) September 6, 2020
Shooting in NBA 2K21 has been overhauled from its 2K20 predecessor. The new shot meter has been giving both old and new players trouble. For example, you can see veteran pro sports gamer (full transparency: also my boss) TheNatural throw up brick after brick in the video above. Luckily, NBA 2K21 has been listening to feedback and made adjustments to shot timing in yesterday’s hotfix.
The hotfix will adjust shooting for the Rookie, Pro, and All-Star difficulty levels. Mike Wang, Executive Producer for NBA 2K, gave a more detailed rundown to Brian Mazique over at Forbes: “Rookie and Pro Offline modes (MyCareer, Quick Play, MyGM, MyLeague) were impacted the most. All-Star Offline, Play Now Online, MyTeam Unlimited and Limited also received a minor boost. Triple Threat Online, Park, Pro-Am, and Rec were not impacted at all.” Shooting will stay the same in higher difficulties and in the Neighborhood mode as well. The NBA 2K21 shooting hotfix is aimed at helping beginners who may bounce off of the more difficult shooting. It doesn’t help players who are long-time NBA 2K fans, however. This is a bold statement, considering how universally difficult shooting has been.
Finding the Shooting Sweet Spot
The silver lining here is in the wording. In a tweet about the hotfix, Wang says “With this year’s shooting changes everything was revamped and it was tough to get perfect out of the box, but we’ll get there.” The implication that shot timing will be continuously adjusted based on feedback is important. That the NBA 2K team is hotfixing the new shooting system already shows a commitment to getting this key feature just right.
Maybe the hotfix wasn’t enough, or maybe you’re playing on a higher difficulty. Either way, if you still need tips on shooting, we’ve got your back. TheNatural’s best advice? Find a jumper you like, learn it, and then turn the shot timer off. The NBA2K subreddit is also a great place to find resources. We’ve got a video with shooting tips as well, which you can find below.
